Tanya Reynolds, Jason Sudeikis, and Brendan Hunt in “Ted Lasso.”Credit: Apple TV
When it came to Ted Lasso‘s fourth season, I wanted nothing more than to take a page out of Ted’s (Jason Sudeikis) book and “believe.”
I wanted to believe that after three years off the air, Ted Lassohad taken an opportunity to reset itself. I wanted to believe that it would fix the issues that plagued its frustrating third season, like bloated episodes and the unfortunate habit of pushing key scenes off camera. Most of all, I wanted to believe that the season’s concentration on women’s sports would give it a renewed sense of purpose.
In the end, Season 4 rewarded my belief — and the belief of all other Ted Lassofans — with a mixed bag. The episodes are still too long, and several story choices are downright bizarre, but at least the Lady Greyhounds and assistant manager Alice (Tanya Reynolds) jolted some new life into the season. If only the show had spent as much time on them as they did on dragging out Roy (Brett Goldstein) and Keeley’s (Juno Temple) inevitable romance.
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That brings us to Season 4’s sweet finale, “Being Alive,” which is a massive step up from last week’s season-low, “Mae Rides The Bus.” In many ways, “Being Alive” is a showcase of Season 4’s wasted potential. Several Lady Greyhounds get moments that flesh them out further. Siobhan (Rex Hayes) and Niamh’s (Aisling Sharkey) rendition of “The Parting Glass” is a touching tribute to Mae (Annette Badland), while Lizzie’s (Faye Marsay) continued struggles with finding childcare emphasize the unfair expectations placed on her as a working mother.
Elsewhere, “Being Alive” remembers that Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham) is a boss, actually, and lets her be as confident and cool as she’s ever been. (While still giving her the opportunity to crash out in hilarious fashion at Roy’s news that he’s heading to Chelsea.) The episode also sees Ted give his son, Henry (Grant Feely), a key heart-to-heart about grief and his own father’s death by suicide. It’s the kind of of open, reassuring chat that’s mostly been missing this season, topped only by Alice and Ted’s silent crying session in episode 8.
The finale is not without its low points — Zelda (Tracey Ullman), we’ll get to you in a moment! — but overall, it does conjure up some hope at Ted Lasso‘s future. However, as Ted Lassofans know all too well, it’s the hope that kills you. So, what lessons can Ted Lasso learn from Season 4 to stop killing us and get back to being its best self?
Show, don’t tell.
Tracey Ullman in “Ted Lasso.”Credit: Apple TV
“Show, don’t tell” is perhaps themost cited piece of storytelling advice, but it’s one Ted Lassoseems to have forgotten about along the way. One of the most egregious examples came in Season 3, which had been building up to Nate’s (Nick Mohammed) breaking free of Rupert (Anthony Head) and West Ham. When his big exit finally came, Ted Lassodidn’t show an ounce of it. Instead, in one of the show’s most baffling moves, we learned about Nate’s departure from a news report.
Ted Lassokeeps up that worrying trend of failing to dramatize key moments in Season 4, especially when it comes to Zelda’s (Tracey Ullman) nefarious plan to gain a controlling stake in Richmond. In the finale, she appears to do just that, and she gloats about it to Rebecca and Higgins’ (Jeremy Swift) faces. After several minutes of over-the-top villainy, Rebecca and Higgins pull a reverse Uno: Zelda thought the Milk sisters had sold her shares to them, but in reality, they’d sold them back to Rebecca. Zelda’s friend Hugo (Alex Blake) had informed Higgins and Rebecca of Zelda’s dastardly plan.
While Ted Lassodoes show Higgins taking a call from Hugo, it otherwise does nothing else to hint at Rebecca’s growing suspicions or changed opinion of Zelda. When the big reveal finally comes, it lands with a resigned thud. Making matters worse? The fact that Rebecca forgives Zelda. Yes, it’s the kind, Ted Lassothing to do, but it also craters the stakes going into next season. Now, Zelda isn’t a big mastermind villain. She’s just a too-broad wild card who we know will try to undermine the club for her own gain. There will be no surprises, and apparently, no growth.
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Side note: Mae’s will plays a big part in the Zelda showdown, as she returns her 2 percent stake in Richmond to Rebecca, therefore giving her full control. But Mae would not have sold in the first place! She did not need to die for Zelda to be thwarted! The disrespect to Mae doesn’t end there. She bequeaths the Crown & Anchor pub to fans Baz (Adam Colborne), Jeremy (Bronson Webb), and Paul (Kevin Garry). Sure, in the women’s sports-focused season, let’s kill off a woman and give her job to three men! What could go wrong?
Make us care about every relationship.
Hannah Waddingham in “Ted Lasso.”Credit: Apple TV
In its first few seasons, Ted Lassobuilt several enduring, beautiful friendships, many of which seemed to vanish this season. Ted and Rebecca are the cornerstone friendship of the show, yet aside from the premiere and the finale, they rarely shared a thoughtful conversation. Watching the two finally get a moment to themselves in the finale felt like seeing an old friend after years apart. Where had they been the whole time?
Several other relationships suffered this season. As soon as Roy and Keeley got back together, the show rushed them straight into pregnancy, without letting viewers settle into their first few weeks back together as a couple. Ted’s connection with Henry also faded to the background this season, only to come roaring back — and wonderfully so! — in the finale.
But the worst offender here is the romance between Rebecca and Dutch pilot Matthijs (Matteo van der Grijn). In its first episodes, Season 4 offered the pair nothing but conflict. Between their differing schedules and a fight about Matthijs possibly moving to London, the pair did not seem destined to be together much longer. Yet Ted Lasso hand-waved their New Year’s reconciliation and seemingly forgot about them until the finale, when Rebecca proposes marriage, and Matthijs agrees. First off, Rebecca’s sudden desire for marriage jumps out of nowhere, like a flying soccer ball to the face. Second off, Ted Lassohas simply not put in the work to make us care about this engagement. I have nothing against Matthijs: I like his bluntness and his willingness to call out Coach Beard’s (Brendan Hunt) strange midlife crisis in the finale. But I don’t know if I like him and Rebecca together, because Ted Lassodoesn’t showcase them enough. All the best wishes to the engaged couple. I just wish I knew them better.
The lack of care put into these relationships is a symptom of Season 4’s biggest problem, which is the show spreading itself too thin. In combining much of its original cast with a full new team, Ted Lassocreated a massive web of connections that it simply couldn’t sustain. (Not without feature-length episodes, and let’s not give them any ideas there.)
Keep the focus on the Lady Greyhounds.
Abbie Hern, Brendan Hunt, Jason Sudeikis, Tanya Reynolds, and Jude Mack in “Ted Lasso.”Credit: Apple TV
This is a lesson that Ted Lassohas steadily been learning towards the end of the season, but as the show heads into a potential Season 5, it bears repeating — especially since the Season 4 finale features cameos from the men’s team, as well as former Richmond team members like Sam (Toheeb Jimoh), Dani (Cristo Fernández), and Coach Nate.
Like Jamie Tartt’s (Phil Dunster) cameo earlier in the season, the return of these characters feels like the warmest of bear hugs. It’s a joy to watch Isaac (Kola Bokinni) gear up to give Beard one of his patented haircuts, just as it’s a joy to watch the Diamond Dogs mount back up — now with Alice joining as “the Cat People.”
But these cameos stirred up two main concerns. One, that this was Ted Lasso‘s way of bringing the men’s team back into the fold. If the show was overcrowded before, meshing the teams would be downright catastrophic. Plus, it would undermine the focus on the women’s team, which has been starving for more screen time as is.
More pressingly, though, I realized that the Lady Greyhounds have no traditions or culture that match what Ted Lassobuilt for the Greyhounds in its early episodes. Alice’s addition to the Diamond Dogs is delightful, but it’s also an amendment to a pre-established dynamic. The same goes for the encouraging Post-it notes appended to the “Believe” sign. They’re lovely, but they’re just adding to a staple of the men’s team. It’s going to take more than that to create a distinct team culture.
Thankfully, Ted Lasso‘s Season 4 finale ends with a clear focus on the women’s team heading into the future. Alice takes the reins as manager, and of course, she’s got a massive binder full of plans to help the team dominate. Meanwhile, Ted becomes assistant manager — a mirror to his job at the grocery store at the very start of the season — and appears excited to let Alice take things from there. With Alice at the head, the future looks bright for the Lady Greyhounds. The same goes for Ted Lasso, as long as it can learn from its mistakes.
Ted LassoSeason 4 is now streaming on Apple TV. The season finale airs Oct. 7.
Belen Edwards is an Entertainment Reporter at Mashable. She covers movies and TV with a focus on fantasy and science fiction, adaptations, animation, and more nerdy goodness. She is a member of the Critics Choice Association and the Television Critics Association, as well as a Tomatometer-approved critic.
